Parma City Hall will not increase security after attack on safety director

-- Mayor Tim DeGeeter said he has no plans to increase security after an Augustine Drive man attacked city Safety Director Greg Baeppler in City Hall on Dec. 10.

“We want to make City Hall easily accessible to our residents and to keep it a safe workplace for our employees,” DeGeeter said in an email to the Sun Post. “So we are going to continue to monitor this issue.

“But this is the first incident of this type we’ve had in recent memory at City Hall,” DeGeeter said. “And this is a situation in which no amount of security would have prevented what happened.”

The Augustine man, 51, faces misdemeanor assault charges because of the incident.

The man is scheduled to appear Wednesday in Parma Municipal Court. He was also charged with criminal damaging and intoxicated disorderly conduct, both misdemeanors.

The incident occurred at about 3:30 p.m. Dec. 10. Earlier that day, the man had called City Hall to complain about a no-parking sign on one of his properties, according to police.

The man ended up talking to Baeppler, who told the man that the no-parking sign would remain standing. The man told Baeppler he would go to City Hall, police said.

The man confronted Baeppler outside his office. He used profanities as he threatened Baeppler, according to the police report.

Police said the man grabbed and tore Baeppler’s necktie in an attempt to pull him down. Baeppler managed to escort the man into a conference room and keep him there until police arrived.

The man has an extensive misdemeanor record in Parma court. Between 1995 and 2009, he was convicted of disorderly conduct, driving without a license, speeding, operating a vehicle while under the influence of alcohol, reckless operation of a vehicle, resisting arrest, intoxicated disorderly conduct, contempt of court and domestic violence.

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